Creedmoor Psychiatric Center redevelopment plan includes new housing, community space for Queens site

Underutilized property at the state-owned Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in eastern Queens could be converted to thousands of housing units under a plan announced by the Hochul administration.

The Creedmoor Community Master Plan seeks to transform about 58 acres of the 125-acre site. It envisions developing 2,800 housing units, with more than 55% designated for homeownership.

The plan also includes "affordable" rental options for seniors and families, as well as housing for veterans, who would have preferential access to a portion of the housing units. In addition, about 14 acres would be set aside for open space and for amenities, such as a recreation center, day care facility, school and retail. 

Gov. Kathy Hochul called it a "once-in-a-generation opportunity" to develop state land and take a step toward addressing the area's housing crisis, though some concerns have been raised by community leaders on both sides of the Queens-Nassau border.

The Creedmoor Psychiatric Center is the largest state-owned psychiatric care facility in New York City.

Creedmoor, which sits on land that had been a farm owned by the Creed family, once housed the New York State National Guard and the acreage was made available as a state hospital site in the early 1900s. By 1959, the head count topped 7,000. In the 1960s, the population began to decline with deinstitutionalization and the increasing use of medications to treat mental illness.

The master plan noted that while the hospital will continue to operate, a reimagining of the larger property was in order.

"Many small parcels of Creedmoor’s property have been sold to nonprofit groups and private developers, but the piecemeal approach of New York State’s previous land dispositions has left the community with an unclear idea of the campus’ future," according to the plan. "In the meantime, neighborhoods around Creedmoor have changed in ways that require a fresh look at how community priorities are evolving and how redevelopment at Creedmoor could address emerging needs."

Details of the governor's plan for the site include the creation of 1,633 new homes for purchase in a variety of building types. These range from two-story homes with private open space to attached townhome triplexes and cooperative buildings. 

The plan would also create 377 "affordable" studio and one-bedroom rental units for senior citizens, and 432 such units with no age restrictions. Another 431 "permanent supportive housing units" are envisioned for tenants with mental illness.

Amenities such as recreational opportunities in the form of pedestrian and bike paths and community facilities are also part of the master plan.

The next steps to make the plan a reality involve an environmental review in 2024. Community feedback will be solicited and proposals sought to help steer the project. 

Officials for nearby Hempstead Town and Bellerose Village declined to comment on the Creedmoor plan, while officials from Floral Park and South Floral Park villages did not respond to requests for comment.

Mimi Pierre Johnson, founder and president of the Elmont Cultural Center, a nonprofit focusing on immigrant issues, said state officials should include Long Islanders in conversations over Creedmoor's future. That starts, she said, with a seat at the table on the advisory committee set to be formed by the Empire State Development office.

She said the plan's "bells and whistles sound awesome and beautiful. But If you don't have community people on that advisory board, you’re left out. She added, "If they're serious about having community input...it just can’t be East Queens. It’s going to affect us on the Nassau border."

The chair of Queens Community Board 13, Bryan Block, and Corey Bearak, the community board's chair of the land-use subcommittee on Creedmoor, said on Wednesday the Creedmoor housing plan was simply too dense.

"The density. That’s it," Block said. "The density is just too much for the community. Folks moved into Bellerose, Floral Park — people moved there for a certain quality of life. They left density. It’s a suburban community is what we want."

Bearak added: "The total acreage of the parcel is about one-third the size of the nearby Glen Oaks Village complex, which has about the same number of units. Creedmoor is a much smaller parcel. It’s injecting an entire brand new community in the midst of a suburban community board."

Moses Gates, the Regional Plan Association's vice president of housing and neighborhood development, spoke highly of the plan. "This provides an opportunity for a new generation," he said.

With Matthew Chayes

By Olivia Winslow

olivia.winslow@newsday.com@newsollie